Coming Full Circle
Hometown Bowl Game Brings Standout Season Full Circle For DJ Glaze
Alyssa Muir, Staff Writer
12/23/2022
DJ Glaze was hearing the same things that everyone else was—Maryland’s bowl game was almost definitely going to be located in either Charlotte, Phoenix or Detroit. And while Glaze recognized that playing in Charlotte would give him the unique opportunity to play in his hometown for the second time in one season, he’s insistent that he didn’t have a true preference for where the Terps would be sent for their second consecutive bowl appearance.
“I was really just excited that we were going to a bowl game for the second year in a row,” Glaze said. “I didn’t care that much which one we were going to go to.”
Still, when it was officially announced on Sunday, Dec. 4 that the Terps would be headed to Charlotte to face former ACC-rival NC State in the Duke’s Mayo Bowl, Glaze couldn’t help but get excited.
“When I found out it was Charlotte, I was definitely a little fired up. Just being able to play in front of my family and to play in the (Carolina) Panther Stadium, that’s a really special opportunity.”
He brings quiet, consistent leadership. He’s one of those guys that’s been a part of our leadership counsel since he’s been here as a young player. Now, you turn and look up, and he’s kind of one of the older statesmen. I only envision him taking even more of a leadership role with the loss of some of the veterans that have helped develop him.Head Coach Michael Locksley
The chance to play at Bank of America Stadium, the home of his childhood favorite team, is the icing on the cake for an already special homecoming for Glaze.
“That’s pretty much the dream of every kid,” Glaze said. “Obviously the big one is to get to the NFL, but playing in the stadium of the team you grew up rooting for is right there too. That’s definitely going to be a cool experience for me.”
Glaze already has 20 to 30 friends and family members who have told him they’ll be in attendance and he expects that number to grow as it gets closer to the game. For Glaze, there’s no way else he’d rather have it.
“Pretty much everything I know now, I got from growing up in Charlotte,” Glaze said. “(The city) is very significant to me and it’ll be a lot of fun to go back there for the second time this year and get to see so many family and friends.”
In some ways, ending the 2022 season in his hometown is the perfect way to round out what has perhaps been the most impressive season of Glaze's three-year career as a Terp.
After making just one appearance in his first year in College Park, Glaze played in all 13 games last season, making six starts along the way at both left and right tackle.
This season, Glaze has become a permanent fixture on a Maryland offensive line responsible for an incredibly well-balanced offense that averaged 29.2 points per game, good for fourth in the Big Ten. Glaze started all 12 games this year, with 11 coming at right tackle and one at left tackle against Indiana when usual starter Jaelyn Duncan was unavailable.
“It’s been really big to be able to plug in anywhere Coach needs me,” Glaze said of his versatility. “First, it helps you get an opportunity on the field faster, but you also create value for yourself by learning every position. You get better at your main position by knowing all the other ones because you know what each one of your teammates is doing and where they’re going to be.”
Glaze attributes a lot of his year-to-year growth to the high standards set by the older linemen, namely graduating seniors Duncan, Spencer Anderson and Johari Branch.
“I’ve learned a lot of good habits from those guys,” Glaze said. “Everyday, I try to do the same things they do and mimic them, and hopefully I’m on that path to go where they’re going soon, which is hopefully the NFL.”
However, for as much as Glaze looks up to the older guys on the line, he himself has been a beacon of leadership since he first got to campus in 2020.
“He brings quiet, consistent leadership,” head coach Michael Locksley said. “He’s one of those guys that’s been a part of our leadership counsel since he’s been here as a young player. Now, you turn and look up, and he’s kind of one of the older statesmen. I only envision him taking even more of a leadership role with the loss of some of the veterans that have helped develop him.”
“Obviously, working right next to each other we talk a lot,” Anderson said. “Technique-wise he’s really sound and he’s also a great leader. We even have some secret calls that we do on our own to help each other out. He listens to me and I listen to him. It’s like we’re synchronized swimmers because we’re always in tune with what the other is doing.”
Glaze isn’t necessarily a loud, in-your-face type leader, instead he lets his work ethic and good habits speak for him most of the time.
“When you do the little things, the right things, you lead by example,” Glaze said. “And when you’re leading by example, guys come up and ask you questions and you kinda keep growing as that leader from there. I just try not to hold anything back and to help everyone grow as much as I can.”
As Glaze knows better than anyone, that leadership will be even more essential next year as Duncan, Anderson and Branch are all set to depart.
“It’s gonna be a whole mix-up with the O-Line losing three senior leaders,” Glaze said. “It’s definitely going to be important to have that leadership so that the line can gel together faster. I know I’m going to have to play a bigger role than even now and lead both by example and vocally to show everyone those good habits like those older guys did for me.”
All three of those seniors have NFL aspirations and Glaze is hopeful he will be in the same boat in the future.
If you talk to those closest to him, there’s little doubt that Glaze will put himself in that position.
“I can tell you he has all the tools, not just as a great football player, but as a guy that’s really well-respected across the board with our team,” Locksley said. “From the time he stepped on campus, he’s been an anchor on the O-Line for us and I expect him to continue to develop himself until he also ends up as a guy that has a chance to play for a long-time on Sundays.”
“He’s a cornerstone piece for the upcoming O-Line,” Anderson added. “I’m excited to see what he can do next year and I believe he’ll be a draftable prospect at the end of it all.”
And though the NFL is obviously the end goal for Glaze, his current focus is on Maryland and the upcoming season. For Glaze, that new season starts with the Duke’s Mayo Bowl on Dec. 30.
“If I do the best I can now to help Maryland, I’ll eventually get noticed,” Glaze said. “That’s something that will happen naturally. Of course, I think about wanting to make it to the NFL, but while I’m at Maryland, I’m focused on Maryland and trying to get better every day.
“We still have bigger goals, not just for myself, but for this program, and that’s what I’m thinking about. The bowl game is a great opportunity to kick that off.”
